Clar, Phelps lead Generals to win

By Dennis Atwood - sports@nvdaily.com

QUICKSBURG -- Senior Night ceremonies seemed a bit of distraction for the Stonewall Jackson girls basketball team, but Wilson Memorial was more of a problem Tuesday night.

Employing a tight defense and aggressive offense, the Green Hornets cut a 14-point lead to three points with 2:17 to play. But the Generals found their focus to make two field goals, and closed out the game with 7 for 8 free-throw shooting to celebrate a 52-42 victory in the regular season Shenandoah District finale for both teams.

The win clinched third place for Stonewall Jackson (16-5, 9-5 Shenandoah), setting up a quick rematch as it hosts No. 5 Wilson Memorial (8-12, 4-9) in a district tournament quarterfinal game Friday night.

Appropriate to the occasion, two seniors led the Generals scoring as guard Ashlie Clar tallied a co-game-high 15 points and forward Keyana Phelps notched 14.

"It was hard to get focused, with all the emotions running through us, and to try to stay focused because just absolutely everything happened tonight," Clar said. "I don't think we were mentally prepared when we first came out."

Phelps opened with five first-quarter points, and Clar hit a 3-pointer for the Generals in the opening frame.

The Hornets scored all of their first-quarter points in the paint, with senior guard Kayley Argenbright scoring six points and sophomore guard Whitney Harris adding four as Stonewall Jackson took a 12-10 lead.

A trey by Argenbright (co-game-high 15 points) accounted for the only Hornets points In the first 5:20 of the second quarter, while the Generals scored seven in that stretch to extend their lead to 19-12.

Senior center Megan Swortzel then executed a personal 5-0 mini-run for the Hornets to cut the Generals' led to 19-18, followed by two free throws from Generals freshman Emily Jordan for a slender 21-18 halftime lead.

With just less than a minute left in the first half, Phelps scrapped with Argenbright for a loose ball under the Hornets' basket, and bodies slammed together.

Phelps stretched out on her back in serious pain. She went to the locker room for examination and treatment.

Phelps didn't emerge from the locker room until 5:18 remained in the third period, when she joined the Generals' bench.

"[Argenbright's] body hit the side of my leg and it popped my knee," Phelps said.
During Phelps' absence, Clar picked up the slack with a field goal and a 3-pointer, part of her eight-point, third-quarter production.

Phelps re-entered the game with 4:52 remaining in the frame and scored the last points of quarter with an offensive rebound putback to give the Generals their largest lead of the night, 39-25.

Then the Hornets went on a 13-2 run, keyed by 4 for 4 free-throw shooting by Molly Huss and a trey by Kahla Mawyer, to cut the Generals' lead to 41-38.

The Generals finally found the net with field goals by Phelps and Hannah Smoot to gain breathing room at 45-38.

With less than a minute remaining on the clock, the Hornets were forced to foul to kill the clock and try to gain possessions, but the Generals ruined that strategy with a 7-for-8 performance at the free-throw line, including 4 for 4 by Phelps.

"[The best thing about this season] is that it's not over -- which is good, actually," Phelps said. "I don't want it to end."

The Generals won the first matchup against the Hornets, 54-50, on Jan. 13.

"I didn't think we played particularly well, especially in the first half," Stonewall Jackson coach Jeff Burner said. "We were sorta our own worst enemy a lot of the night. So hopefully we'll improve on those things and start getting better, because the postseason is coming up, and the intensity level goes up and all those other things."